WELCOME: UPCOMING EVENTS: NOVEMBER 2017 CONGRATS TO OUR TOP PRODUCERS:

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1 THE STATE UPDATE NOVEMBER 2017 WELCOME: Royal LePage State Realty would like to wish our newest Team members a warm welcome! Candace Levie-Burgess Justin Cothran Ajah Bhalla UPCOMING EVENTS: FALTOUR : - Nov 8 Phase 1 Nov 14 Phase 2 Nov 16 Phase 1 Nov 22- Phase 2 Stoney Creek Sales Meeting Nov 7th Hamilton Sales Meeting Nov 7th Followed by a Genworth Update Unlock the Power of Your Contacts RLP Corporate - Ancaster Office Nov 13th Make 2018 your Best Year Yet Webinar: Nov 15 Get Social with Tracy Social Media Workshop - Nov 15 Buyer Agency Explained - Ancaster Office Nov 21 Filing HST Returns - Information Workshop Stoney Creek Office Nov 23 Growing Your Business with Smart Studio Webinar: Nov 29 Ancaster Sales Meeting Nov 30th CONGRATS TO OUR TOP PRODUCERS: #1 THE #2 ROSEmaRy mazza TEam FERROni #3 THE HEDDlE GROUP #7 ROB CECCHETTi #4 BOB BailEy #8 mark & ViVian DEBRUyn-SmiTH #5 THE GallaCE-GiRaRD TEam #6 louise GUSTin #9 KEVin KOSlOWSKi #10 isaac PHilliPS Royal LePage State Realty is Proud to Announce THE TOP 10 PRODUCERS for the Month of October 1 S TAT E R E A LT Y B R O K E R AG E I N D E P E N D E N T LY OW N E D & O P E R AT E D

2 COMPANY UPDATES: TRADE RECORD UPDATE: Please ensure that you are signing off on your Trade Records and submitting them to the Deal Administrator Deals will not be processed unless these trades are signed and uploaded to Faltour There have been many discrepancies with commissions after the deal has been closed and paid out. To avoid these mistakes from happening it is up to agent to review the trade record to ensure it is accurate ING DOCUMENTATION: Reminder to all agents that paperwork should be scanned and ed to the Receptionists and Deal Administrators for Processing 2017 Awards Update: Just a reminder that the Royal LePage Realtor Awards cut off date is November 30, 2017 for CLOSED AND COLLECTED gross commissions. Award level thresholds MUST be met to qualify for an award - NO EXCEPTIONS. The awards period for 2017 runs from December 1, 2016 to November 30, The "Red Diamond Award" is a new award introduced for the 2017 award year, recognizing realtors who earn $500,000 in closed and collected gross commissions. 2

3 EVENTS: FUTURE FALTOUR WORKSHOPS All sessions will be held at the from 10am-12pm Wed Nov 8 Phase 1 Tues Nov 14 Phase 2 Thurs Nov 16 Phase 1 Wed Nov 22- Phase 2 Wed Nov 29 Phase 1 Phase 2 will be for agents that have already attended Register for any workshop through michelleridgers@royallepage.ca UNLOCK THE POWER OF YOUR CONTACTS Delivers a value-packed in-person workshop delivered by Royal LePage trainers: Ancaster Office NOVEMBER 13TH, 9AM-12PM Register online through Lone Wolf Develop a custom stay-in-touch strategy that works for your market and your network Target messages that are relevant and focused on the value you can deliver Leverage Social Media to find the right people, capture their attention and get results Profit from tools designed to elevate your brand and automate your marketing. Tracy Lynn our Social Media consultant will be hosting a Get Social workshop Drop in on Wednesday November 15th between 10am-12pm Make 2018 your Best Year Yet Webinar: Wed Nov 15 at 2pm Register online through the RLP Network Buyer Agency Explained Course November 21 at the Ancaster Office at 10am. Register online through Lone Wolf HST Information Session - How to file your HST Returns & ask any Questions on HST Join Patricia Ciofani, Accounting Administrator on Thursday November 23rd at 10am at the Stoney Creek Office RSVP to patriciap@royallepage.ca Growing Your Business with Smart Studio Webinar: Wed Nov 29 from 2pm-3pm Register online through the RLP Network 3

4 Order your Christmas cards now and receive the early bird special! **New Designs Added for 2017** 2017 Catalogue is available at the front desk or order online at Pro Finish Early Bird Special: October 1st - December 1st All pricing includes: Envelopes (the same size of the card) Your own Message on the front of the card Your own personal greeting on the inside (black text only) Standard Personalized Backside ***Please note, for the Personalized Photo Templates an additional $5.00 set-up charge will apply Quantity amounts available for the Pro Finish Christmas Cards are as listed below: *Sorry, No Exceptions 4.25 x : $60 100: $80 200: $ : $ : $ : $ : $305 5 x 7 50: $85 100: $ : $ : $ : $ : $ : $410 To order yours online today, visit: royalmarketingstate.com or marketingdepartment@royallepage.ca The request must contain the following information: 1. Your chosen card size 2. The template design # 3. Your message for the front of the card 4. Your inside Greeting Verbiage 4

5 Thank You! Our Annual Charity Golf Tournament Raised $6000 for the Royal LePage Women's Shelter Foundation ANNUAL CHARITY GOLF TOURNAMENT 5

6 COMPANY UPDATES: NOVEMBER 2017 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Unlock the Power of Your Contacts RLP Corporate Ancaster Office 9:00-12:00 RSVP on LoneWolf SALES MEETING Stoney Creek Office 9:30am 10:30am Followed by Genworth Update PHASE 2 FALTOUR PHASE 1 FALTOUR BUYER AGENCY EXPLAINED Ancaster Office 10:00 am Register online through Lone Wolf 28 Get Social with Tracy Social Media Workshop 2018 Your Best Year Yet Webinar: 2pm Register online through the RLP Network PHASE 2 FALTOUR PHASE 1 FALTOUR Growing Your Business with Smart Studio Webinar: 2pm-3pm Register online through the RLP Network PHASE 1 FALTOUR Information Workshop Filing HST Returns Patricia Ciofani, Accounting Administrator Stoney Creek Office 10:00am RSVP to Patricia patriciap@royallepage.ca SALES MEETING Ancaster Office 10:00am SALES TEAM MEETING NEW ORIENTATION OTHER Questions? michelleridgers@royallepage.ca 6

7 SOCIAL MEDIA UPDATE: Have you thought about using video in place of your Facebook cover photo? When users visit your page, your Facebook cover photo is one of the first things they ll notice. For new visitors, your cover photo can help represent your brand and portray your story in just a few seconds. It only makes sense that a short video can accomplish this better than a still photo. Video immediately grabs the audience s attention. Just like in the news feed, a cover video will auto play (without sound), drawing users eyes right to it. This may help keep visitors on your page and simultaneously drive more engagement. Uploading a video as your Facebook cover image is as simple as uploading a new photo. Hover your mouse over the cover image on your Facebook page and you ll see a camera icon pop up. Click the Change Cover icon. Another reason why real estate professionals should be taking advantage of social media websites is to network within the real estate industry. Reaching out to your current and past clients through your Facebook page is an excellent way to ask for referrals for your business. At the end of your posts, you may want to prompt your readers to share your article or link with someone that they know who is looking for a new house. Using social media to network with your current and past clients is a highly effective way to generate new business. Book your content calendar brainstorming session and social media consultation today! It's a good time to start planning for 2018! Tracy Lynn, TRACY LYNN Media Professional

8 Is It Time To Lock In A Variable Rate Mortgage? Approximately 32 per cent of Canadians are in a variable rate mortgage, which with rates effectively declining steadily for the better part of the last ten years has worked well. Recent increases triggers questions and concerns, and these questions and concerns are best expressed verbally with a direct call to your independent mortgage expert not directly with the lender. There are nuances you may not think to consider before you lock in, and that almost certainly will not be primary topics for your lender. Over the last several years there have been headlines warning us of impending doom with both house price implosion, and interest rate explosion, very little of which has come to fruition other than in a very few localised spots and for short periods of time thus far. Before accepting what a lender may offer as a lock in rate, especially if you are considering freeing up cash for such things as renovations, travel or putting towards your children s education, it is best to have your mortgage agent review all your options. And even if you simply wanted to lock in the existing balance, again the conversation is crucial to have with the right person, as one of the key topics should be prepayment penalties. In many fixed rate mortgage, the penalty can be quite substantial even when you aren t very far into your mortgage term. People often assume the penalty for breaking a mortgage amounts to three months interest payments, which in the case of 90% of variable rate mortgages is correct. However, in a fixed rate mortgage, the penalty is the greater of three months interest or the interest rate differential (IRD). The IRD calculation is a byzantine formula. One designed by people working specifically in the best interests of shareholders, not the best interests of the client (you). The difference in penalties from a variable to a fixed rate product can be as much as a 900 per cent increase. The massive penalties are designed for banks to recuperate any losses incurred by clients (you) breaking and renegotiating the mortgage at a lower rate. And so locking into a fixed rate product without careful planning can mean significant downside. Keep in mind that penalties vary from lender to lender and there are different penalties for different types of mortgages. In addition, things like opting for a cash back mortgage can influence penalties even more to the negative, with a claw-back of that cash received way back when. Another consideration is that certain lenders, and thus certain clients, have fixed payment variable rate mortgages. Which means that the payment may at this point be artificially low, and locking into a fixed rate may trigger a more significant increase in the payment than expected. There is no generally correct answer to the question of locking in, the type of variable rate mortgage you hold and the potential changes coming up in your life are all important considerations. There is only a specific-to-you answer, and even then - it is a decision made with the best information at hand at the time that it is made. Having a detailed conversation with the right people is crucial. It should also be said that a poll of 33 economists just before the recent Bank of Canada rate increase had 27 advising against another increase. This would suggest that things may have moved too fast too soon as it is, and we may see another period of zero movement. The last time the Bank of Canada pushed the rate to the current level it sat at this level for nearly five full years. Life is variable, perhaps your mortgage should be too. As always, if you have questions about locking in your variable mortgage, or breaking your mortgage to secure a lower rate, or any general mortgage questions, I m here to help! 8